False Start - Jessica Ruddick Page 0,67

the rest of the way. Then he rolled away from me to fish in his nightstand. Hearing the tear of the condom wrapper, I swallowed and exhaled slowly.

When he turned back to me, he kissed me tenderly, running his fingers along my face. “If you’re—”

I gripped his shoulders and met his gaze. “I’ve never been more ready. I want to share this with you.” I wanted to share everything with him.

Emotion flooded his face. “I love you. I’ve always loved you.”

Cupping his face, I smiled. “I know.” I’d always felt the pull between us, but I’d almost given up on it. I thanked God I hadn’t.

He positioned himself between my thighs, and I felt him against my opening. My instinct was to tense up, but I forced myself to relax.

As Carson kissed me tenderly, he pushed inside slowly, and my legs spread farther to accommodate him. I wrapped my arms around him, clinging to his shoulders. When he was all the way in, he met my gaze. A silent question lit his eyes. Are you okay?

I nodded. He withdrew, leaving me feeling suddenly empty. Then he filled me again, and I hissed at the sweet feeling of the friction. It only took me a moment to catch on to the rhythm, and then my hips moved to meet his.

Being with Carson was everything I’d hoped it would be—full of love and tenderness. Choking up, I reveled at the feeling of him moving inside me.

When his body shuddered with his release, I clung to him and rode the wave.

***

Carson

I WATCHED BECCA sleep. Stretched out beside me and tucked next to my chest, she seemed so tiny. And so sexy. God, I couldn’t forget that. So much sexy in a tight little package.

She stirred. Opening her eyes, she stretched as a sleepy, contented smile formed on her face. I did that.

I kissed the tip of her nose. “Good morning.”

“Morning.”

“I was thinking we could go out for breakfast.”

She raised her eyebrows with a coy smile. “Aren’t you supposed to buy me a meal before?”

I grinned, glad that the playful part of our relationship was still intact. “You know I don’t play by the rules. But I do have something serious to ask you.”

Pushing her hair out of her eyes, she sat up, much more alert. “What?” Her voice was slightly alarmed, and I almost felt bad. Almost.

“Was I worth the wait?”

She burst out laughing. “Do you really want me to answer that?”

Shit. That was not the reaction I’d expected. Last night had been fucking amazing. Hell, I could have simply held her hand for several hours, and that would have been amazing, too, because I just wanted to be near her. But being inside her and feeling her body tighten around me had been fucking heaven.

“Maybe?”

She tapped her chin with her pointer finger. “I might need some more information in order to form an opinion.”

I perked up. “That could be arranged.”

Just as I was reaching for her, her phone rang. She frowned. “Why would someone call me at nine on a Sunday morning?” She grabbed her phone off the nightstand. After looking at it, she answered. “Hey, Dad.”

Talk about a mood killer. I shifted to the other side of the bed. Awkward.

“No, you didn’t wake me.” She paused and listened. “They’re sure they got the right guy? Thank God. I’ll sleep easier now.” She glanced over at me and grinned. “Yes, Carson’s been taking great care of me.”

My balls iced over. Holy fuck. I respected the hell out of Officer Zizzo, and I was pretty sure he liked me but as Roman’s friend. Becca was his little girl, and the man carried a gun. That wasn’t a combination I wanted to test. Sure, he was tasked with upholding the law, but all bets were off where Becca was concerned.

Becca ended the call and laughed. “Relax. Be glad you don’t have to do the whole ‘meet the parents’ thing.”

“This is worse,” I muttered.

“Why?”

“Because they know me.” I could turn on the charm when I wanted, making parents and grandparents adore me, but there would be no charming the Zizzos. They knew everything about me, from how shitty of a student I was to the fact that I’d dated more girls than I could remember. I was not the kind of guy they would choose for their daughter. Hell, I wouldn’t choose me for Becca either.

And then there was Roman. Fuck. Talk about breaking the bro code. I couldn’t even think about talking to him